Rites of Passage
by Nymbis
Summary: Jinora has a new look. Shameless Kainora fluff featuring Bumi's unorthodox life lessons and a baby bison with a cold.


"You know," Kai said, sitting cross-legged in front of the sick airbison, "I think it'd be easier to get a Dai Li agent to play a Tsungi horn than get you to eat this."

The baby bison only looked at him with impossibly wet eyes, its mouth parting to allow his tongue to fall out. Kai frowned in return, his chin cradled in his hand as he hopelessly prodded Ketu's nose with a metal spoon full of green, disgusting-looking medicine.

_Poke. _Ketu's eyes went cross as the bison glared daggers at the offense.

_Poke, poke. _Ketu took a deep breath through his nostrils, not that Kai noticed. His attention was instead focused up at the Northern Air Temple, his head turned away from the ornery bison. The temple stood almost like a guardian, overlooking the meadow where the young airbison played, and where Kai was currently bison-sitting. Without Jinora. Because Jinora was in a secret ceremony, or something.

And he hadn't been invited. Because that was fair.

Kai shook his head and exhaled slowly. It was fine. And it wasn't like Jinora was hanging out with poachers or anything. Just her dad. And people were allowed to do things with just their dads sometimes.

So. It was fine. And he wasn't curious about it at all. Or bored. Or wishing Jinora had ditched Tenzin to help him take care of Ketu because she was _good _at this sort of thing and he wasn't. He had nine spilled remedies, three hours wasted, and one bison who was still sick to prove it.

He turned back to face Ketu. "Come on boy, eat up so you can go play with the other bison…"

Ketu's lopsided tongue somehow managed to flop out even more. And a resounding _thwack! _was heard throughout the meadow as Kai's palm connected with the expanse of his forehead.

"Stop being stubborn!" Kai cried out, stubbornly.

Ketu's only response was to bury its fluffy head underneath its fluffy legs.

The young airbender sighed, and before he knew it, his gaze was drifting towards the Temple again. He hoped that whatever Jinora and Tenzin were talking about was over soon.

Ketu gave a miserable groan from underneath its impromptu fluff armor.

Kai frowned. As irritating as Ketu was being, he didn't like seeing him sick. And since the only way to get Ketu _un_sick was to feed him the herbal mixture Kya made…

Kai reluctantly prodded the spoon against Ketu's head one more time-

-and was rewarded with a big, airbison sneeze aimed right at him.

"Ketu!" Kai cried, abruptly standing and backing away from the baby bison.

He cringed as he looked down at his airbender's robes. They were…snotted.

Kai's nose wrinkled as his fingers gingerly pinched the bottom hem of the outer tunic. Green goop fell off and landed in a pile by his feet. "Gross," he muttered, moving his hands in a circle. Air blew most of the offending mess away.

"Problems with the cavalry?"

Kai jerked, spinning on his feet to look behind him. There, wearing his own set of acolyte robes sat Bumi, nestled comfortably between two baby bison. Kai's head tilted. He looked way too comfortable, feet propped up on a rock and…was that a half-eaten bag of fire flakes at his side?

"How long have you been sitting there?" Kai asked, eyes narrowing as he looked at Bumi, the fire flakes, than back to Bumi.

Bumi gave a guilty chomp, before swallowing the food in his mouth with a dismissive hand wave, "Son, the time of day isn't important right now."

Kai's stare remained narrowed.

The older man cleared his throat and sat upright, "Look I needed _something _to do while Tenzin gave Jinora her tattoos-"

Kai felt a knot form in his throat, and his voice escalated a little in pitch, "-Jinora's getting her tattoos?"

Bumi rolled his eyes, "What other secret airbending ceremony could there be?" He dug a pinkie into his ear, "Last I checked, there was only the tattoos and something about a mysterious trip to the desert with some cactus juice, but uncle Sokka was probably pulling my leg on that one…" Bumi's face brightened, "Say, did I ever tell you about the time when we faced a man-eating armadillodile with only sand dunes for cover?"

"N…o," Kai said, and, sensing a tangent in the air, tried to redirect the conversation, "But you really think Jinora's getting her airbending master's tattoos right now?"

Bumi gave what Kai could only call a pout, "_Duh. _And no one thought to invite dear, old uncle Bumi to watch. You know, I taught Jinora everything she knows about cannons and ocarinas. Surely that has to count for _something. _But noooo-" Bumi's face drew up into an overly stoic expression that Kai immediately recognized as Tenzin's, "-The ceremony is meant to only be between student and master. No uncles."

Kai scratched the back of his head, looking up once again to the Air Temple. When he spoke, it was quiet and mostly to himself, "…Jinora didn't say anything about it."

Bumi stared at the young man with a crestfallen expression, then to what he was looking at. A bushy eyebrow perked up and a contemplative look crossed his face. A little less gracefully than how another airbender might do the same movement, Bumi jettisoned a puff of air underneath him and floated to stand beside Kai. Once his feet touched the ground, he slung a heavy, comradely arm over the boy's shoulders.

"You know," Bumi began, "Why don't we take a look at our friend here."

Kai turned from the temple and back to Ketu, who was now laying belly-up and looking as if the world had failed him. "Yeah, okay." He sighed, looking down at the sick bison with a sad frown, "He won't take his medicine."

Bumi crouched, rubbing a finger over his chin in contemplation, "Looks lonely to me."

Kai kicked absently at a patch of grace, hands jamming into the pockets of his robe, "Yeah, I guess. All the other bison have been flying without him."

The older airbender sat staring at Ketu for so long, with such intense concentration, that Kai was almost certain he was about to make a lesson out of this somehow. Or a metaphor. Or say something wise.

Bumi gave a thoughtful hum, and Kai mentally prepared himself for a teaching moment, "…Did you try wrapping it in cheese?"

So much for that. "Uh…"

Bumi fiddled around in his robes before pulling out an actual piece of cheese, "Works for Naga all the time," he said in response to Kai's incredulous expression, and diligent hands wrapped the spoon in what looked like cheddar, "Bottom's up Ketu!"

Kai watched as Bumi's spoon rested on Ketu's tongue. Ketu groaned, almost in embarrassment, before his big mouth shut around it.

Kai felt a genuine smile grow on his face, "It's working!"

Bumi grinned, "Of course it's working! We used similar tactics on the armadillodile-"

-Ketu spit the spoon, cheese and medicine included, back into Bumi's face. The older man's expression was frozen as it slid down his nose and plopped at his feet. Kai fought very, very hard to keep the laugh down.

Bumi wiped his face clean and shrugged, "Well, that's that then. I tried."

Kai's eyes widened, "You're just quitting?"

He held up a solitary finger, "Not quitting. Strategically retreating."

"What's the difference?"

"I feel better about the second one."

Kai rolled his eyes, "Thanks anyways. I guess."

Bumi clapped a hand on his shoulder, "Anytime. Now, there's a lesson here."

"About cheese?"

"No, not about-" Bumi paused, "_Partially _about cheese. And the lesson is that everything happens when it's supposed to, and sometimes you can cover it in cheese, and sometimes you can't. But the important thing is that you try things the way you try them."

Kai blinked. Slowly. "What-?"

"-Yes, yes I know. Very wise. You're welcome," Bumi gave a big yawn, arms stretching over his head. His back gave a loud popping sound, "Looks like my work's done here. Good luck with the medicine. I think it'll be good for you."

Kai tilted his head. "The medicine's for Ketu-"

"Gotta go, things to do and fire flakes to replenish!" Bumi called, before he shot up in a gust of air, the old soldier leaping from rock ledge to rock ledge until he was finally a small orange blur.

Kai fell to a slump, running a hand slowly through Ketu's fur, "I do _not _get that guy sometimes."

Ketu smacked his mouth open and closed, as if to purge the remaining taste of cheese on his tongue.

Kai kept petting the bison's stomach, "…Why wouldn't Jinora tell me she was getting her tattoos today?"

Ketu gave a snort.

"Yeah, I don't know either," Kai gave a small smile that he didn't entirely feel, "Let's try and get you some medicine, okay?"

Ketu groaned, eyes rolling skyward.

Kai wasn't sure how long he sat with Ketu, but he didn't even notice the sun starting to set until he heard a hesitant voice calling out behind him.

"Kai? What are you doing out here?"

Even though he wasn't sure why Jinora didn't tell him about maybe getting her tattoos today, he couldn't stop the wide smile that formed on his face when he recognized her voice. Abruptly, Kai shuffled himself into standing, turning around.

"Jinora-"

His jaw went slack.

Jinora stood across from him, glider in hand and a trail of red growing over her cheeks. She was dressed in airbender robes, but ones that were sleeveless and showed a trail of light blue arrows that began at her hands and spanned the entire length of her arms before disappearing under her tunic. The skin that surrounded the tattoos was red and agitated, and he had no doubt that Bumi was right about the ceremony.

"-you're bald." Was all he could come up with, his stare trained on the top of her head. Sure enough, Jinora's scalp was bare of any adornment save the blue arrow that ended at her forehead.

Her face grew redder, and one of her ankles hooking behind the other as she self-consciously rubbed the skin beside her new tattoo, "Yeah. Is it...bad?"

Kai felt his own cheeks heat up, though he wasn't sure why, "No! It looks…" he shrugged, "You look cool."

Jinora bit down on her lip, her eyes darting to the ground and staying there, "…thanks."

Kai kicked absently again, "So this means you're like, an adult now, right?"

"I think so," Jinora's brown eyes looked up. Kai really liked her eyes, and with her hair gone, they seemed especially big. Which was nice. And pretty, "I mean, as an airbender. Dad made it clear I wasn't allowed to move out or…" she sent him a speculative look that Kai didn't really understand, before she was blushing again, "Or anything. Yet."

"Oh," Kai put his hands in his pockets, not sure what to make of that, "…Does it feel different?"

"It itches a little bit."

"Well. You look cool."

Jinora gave him a little smile, and his palms were kind of sweaty for some reason, "You said that already."

"I did?"

Her smile grew, "Yeah."

They stood quietly for a few moments, and Kai finally cleared his throat, "You, um. Want to help me feed a bison?"

Jinora nodded, and looked almost a little relieved at having something she knew how to handle, "Sure! What's wrong with Ketu?"

Kai sat back down in front of the sick bison, but this time he left room for Jinora to sit on the side. She kneeled next to him, her hand (which had an arrow on it now. And it looked cool. Which he had to keep thinking, or he would keep saying it) resting on the patch of fur on Ketu's belly that Kai had been petting earlier.

"It looks like it's just a cold," she said after she stared at Ketu's sad, big eyes, "A few of the other bison had it earlier this week."

She was so smart. "He won't take his medicine, I've been trying," he rolled his eyes, "Bumi said something about cheese."

Jinora frowned, and Kai's eyes drifted up to the tattoo on her forehead, "But bison hate cheese."

"Yeah he spit it out on Bumi's face."

Her eyes crinkled in a hint of a laugh, and Kai felt compelled to make it a real one, so he mimicked her uncle's expression as the bison spit hit his face. At the impression, Jinora let out a giggle, hand pressed over her mouth to muffle the sound. Kai grinned in return.

After she regained her composure, Jinora gave a small shrug of her shoulders, "Dad says that when we can't solve a problem traditionally it's important to try other approaches."

Kai blinked. That was…kind of like what Bumi had suggested earlier. A little. "Like what?"

Jinora tilted her head, "You're really fast," she offered, "You could think of it like," she blushed, "like sneaking into a building?"

Kai's eyes widened, "Maybe! Hold on…" his quick fingers, nimble from years of picking pockets and undoing the tumblers on locks, poured another spoonful of medicine out, "I'll need you to distract him."

Jinora gave him an owlish look, "Distract Ketu?"

"Yeah, misdirection."

She gave him a serious nod, "Okay."

"Alright. On my count. One…two…three- go!"

Jinora began to spin small circles of air around Ketu's head, and the bison looked up in a huffy annoyance as small breezes ruffled the fur around his ears and horns. Kai took a deep breath, eyebrows furrowed in concentration, as he waited for the opportune moment. Like stealing a bag of coins from a belt, a successful heist was all a matter of timing and using the element of surprise to someone's advantage.

Ketu finally gave an ornery groan of protest at the air spun faster, and Kai saw his opportunity. As soon as Ketu's mouth opened, he bent back the spoon with his thumb and shot the medicine into the bison's mouth like a sling shot. Ketu stopped his groaning to send Kai a dazed, betrayed look before the bison was forced to swallow.

"You did it!" Jinora cheered, throwing her arms around Kai's shoulders.

"_We _did it!" Kai corrected, hugging her back tightly.

The two of them held their hug for a few moments. Jinora felt warm against him, which was nice, but Kai suddenly remembered that his palms were probably still sweaty from earlier. And he didn't want to sweat on Jinora's new robes or anything, so he pulled away quickly (before she noticed his weird palm-sweat) and rubbed his neck.

Jinora sat on her knees still, leaning back and grinning, "I'm glad Ketu'll be feeling better."

"Yeah," Kai said, looking at her bigger-than-usual eyes again. The words tumbled out before he could stop them, "How come you didn't tell me you were getting your master tattoos today?"

"Oh," her eyes slid towards Ketu, "I. Was a little embarrassed, I guess."

For the second time today, Kai felt his jaw go a little slack, "Embarrassed? Why? It's a big deal!"

He noticed that her fingers were starting to fidget with the folds of her new robes, "I…" she went red again, "I've never been bald, before."

Kai frowned, "You didn't tell me because you would be bald?"

Jinora bit down on her lip, "I've just. Always had hair."

Kai continued to frown, "Don't all airbenders shave their head for the tattoos though?"

She nodded, "I just," she ran a hand over her head, "I didn't want to look weird," she finally muttered, sending him a shy glance.

Kai laughed, and one of his hands grabbed hers, giving it a squeeze, "You'd never look weird, Jinora."

She hesitantly threaded her fingers through his. The blue arrow stood out starkly as the sun began to set in the meadow, "I know it's not a big deal. Looking weird, that is. Having tattoos is a huge honor-"

Kai tried really hard not to think about palm sweat. And instead just smiled, "They look cool." And then winced, "I've…said that already."

Jinora gave that small smile again, the one that made his face go red a lot, "Twice."

"And-" he leaned forward, just a little, "-it makes your eyes look bigger."

Said eyes, in fact, went bigger, "My eyes?"

"Yeah. They're pretty. You're pretty." His palms were definitely going to get weird and sweaty again.

"You think I'm pretty?"

He swallowed, "Pretty cool-"

And groaned. But Jinora started to laugh at his expression, and it wasn't long before Kai joined in. When the laughter finally ebbed, Jinora looked back to Ketu with a thoughtful expression.

"You know, I think Ketu likes you."

Kai reluctantly tore his stare away from where their hands were still joined and looked at the sick bison. Ketu, sensing attention, rolled back onto his belly and rested his head on Kai's thigh. "You think so?"

Jinora nodded, "He's had a hard time with everyone else. Maybe…" She sent him a hopeful look, "Maybe one day he'll be your companion."

Kai looked down at Ketu, whose eyes were starting to drift close. He started to pet him again, "I'd like that." He paused, turning towards Jinora, "Do you have a bison yet?"

She shook her head, "No, it's been a long time since we've had a herd like this. And with all the new airbenders…"

He smiled, coming to a decision that he somehow knew was the right one, "We'll share him, then."

Jinora blinked, "Airbenders usually don't share companions-"

"You helped him take his medicine," Kai reasoned, "That means he must like you too."

She ran her free hand over Ketu's head, "You don't mind?"

Kai smiled, "No."

Jinora returned the expression, before she looked up at the fading sun, "It's getting late. We should probably get back to the temple."

"I guess so."

"And Kai?"

He turned to face her, "Yeah, Jinora?"

She leaned forward and pressed a kiss to his cheek, "I think you're cool, too."


End file.
